Gender-balanced representation among the decision-makers of the European Union is an important step towards full realisation of the principle of equality between women and men enshrined in the EU Treaties. The Union has made steady and significant progress, starting from a very low presence of women among EU Commissioners and Members of the European Parliament at the time when those institutions were created. The European Parliament is today one of the world's most gender-balanced representative assemblies, but there are still significant divergences between EU countries.

EPRS Policy Podcast - Towards gender balance in the European elections: Electoral quotas

Equal pay for equal work is one of the European Union's founding principles, enshrined in Article 157 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union (TFEU). However, the implementation and enforcement of this principle remain a challenge. Due to a lack of pay transparency, pay discrimination often goes undetected and victims face difficulties in making a claim for redress. On 4 March 2021, the European Commission adopted a legislative proposal on binding pay transparency measures. The proposed directive to strengthen the application of the principle of equal pay for equal work or work of equal value between men and women through pay transparency and enforcement mechanisms focuses on measures to ensure pay transparency, and better access to justice for victims of pay discrimination.

EPRS policy podcast - Equal pay for equal work between men and women: Pay transparency and enforcement mechanisms

Statistics and research results show that in recent decades, before the coronavirus pandemic, the EU's labour market witnessed an increase in female employment rates. Women's employment seems to have been more resilient than men's to the economic and financial crisis in 2008. The coronavirus crisis, however, has had a harsher impact on women than on men when it comes to the labour market.

EPRS policy podcast - Recent trends in female employment

The United Nations defines violence against women as "any act of gender-based violence that results in, or is likely to result in, physical, sexual, or mental harm or suffering to women, including threats of such acts, coercion or arbitrary deprivation of liberty, whether occurring in public or in private life."

The Council of Europe Convention on preventing and combating violence against women, also known as the Istanbul Convention, is the first legally binding international instrument on this issue. It establishes a comprehensive framework of measures for preventing such violence, supporting victims and punishing perpetrators.&nbsp;

MEPs have voted during May 2023 plenary to approve the European Union’s accession to the Convention on preventing and combating violence against women, concluding Parliament’s role in the process. Six years after the EU signed the Istanbul Convention - it has still not been ratified because of the refusal of a few member states, despite&nbsp;Parliament’s multiple calls to this end.

However, the EU&nbsp;Court of Justice’s opinion of 6 October 2021&nbsp;confirmed that the European Union can ratify the Istanbul Convention without having the agreement of all member states. The Court found that the appropriate scope for the EU’s accession is asylum, judicial cooperation in criminal matters, and obligations of the EU institutions and public administration.

The EU’s accession to the Istanbul Convention does not exempt member states from ratifying it themselves, MEPs have repeatedly said, urging the remaining six countries - Bulgaria, Czechia, Hungary, Latvia, Lithuania and Slovakia - to ratify the Convention without delay, so that it can protect women to the full extent of the Convention’s intended scope

Violence against women

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International Women’s Day is held every year on 8 March. Equality between women and men is one of the objectives of the European Union.

Over time, legislation, case-law and changes to the Treates have helped shore up this principle and its implementation in the EU. The European Parliament has always been a fervent defender of the principle of equality between men and women.

On this occassion, Ivana Andrés and Alba Redondo from the Spanish women’s national football team, which won the 2023 World Cup addressed the EP Plenary in Strasbourg on 12 March 2024.

President Metsola said International Women’s Day is not only a moment to recognise the achievements of women and girls across the world. It should also be a call to action to strengthen gender equality across all spheres of our society. Seeing it as an invitation for societies to do better, President Metsola said: “The time is now for the European Union to lead by example - to set standards in criminalising violence against women, to improve access to justice, and to ratify the Istanbul Convention before the end of this term.

International Women’s Day

Full gender equality is far from being achieved, and this has implications for the lives and life chances of individual women, girls, boys and men, the communities they live in and the EU as a whole. The European Parliament has consistently taken a strong, proactive stance on advancing gender equality, stressing the need to deliver on EU commitments.

The EP´s Committee of Women´s rights and Gender equality (FEMM) is in the heart of these discussions.

Options for further EU involvement could include better implementation and enforcement of existing legislation, moves to modernise it, fill gaps in protection and address emerging issues, and non-legislative measures such as data collection and monitoring, awareness-raising, and support for national and grassroots initiatives.

Promoting equal economic independence for women and men, closing the gender pay gap, advancing gender balance in decision making, ending gender based violence and promoting gender equality beyond the EU are the concrete areas of interest for the EU.

Gender balance

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The right to health, including sexual and reproductive health, is protected internationally.&nbsp;Access to sexual and reproductive healthcare goods and services is a fundamental component of sexual and reproductive rights.

Under international human rights law and standards, European Union Member States should ensure access to safe and quality sexual and reproductive healthcare.

A range of United Nations (UN) treaties ban discrimination in general terms, effectively outlawing discrimination in sexual and reproductive health and rights. These rights include the right to health and the right to family planning, equal access to service, freedom from violence and the right to life. Specific international treaty protections exist to combat discrimination on the grounds of sex, race, disability but not sexual orientation or gender identity.

At European level, the Council of Europe protects sexual and reproductive health and rights through the European Convention on Human Rights and through the Convention on preventing and combating violence against women and domestic violence (the Istanbul Convention).

Sexual and reproductive health and rights

High Level Group on Gender Equality and Diversity Constitutive meeting

Find out about the economic inequalities that continue to persist between women and men in the EU.

It has been more than 25 years since the adoption of the UN’s Beijing Declaration, which aims to promote equality between men and women. The same goal lies behind the creation of UN Women - dedicated to gender equality and the empowerment of women - and the inclusion of gender equality in the Sustainable Development Goals.
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So where do we stand? Progress has been made, but inequality between men and women persists, including on the labour market. On average, women in the EU are paid less than men.

Gender pay gap in Europe: facts and figures

EP Plenary session - Oral question - The EU priorities for the 68th session of the UN Commission on the Status of Women

EP Plenary session - Gender aspects of the rising cost of living and the impact of the energy crisis

Practicing What We Preach - Gender Equality in the EP management

TRAN - Exchange of views on ' Women in Transport '

FEMM Committee - Exchange of views on pay transparency, gender pay gap and pension gap with Commissioner Dalli

FEMM Committee - Presentation by EIGE (European Institute for Gender Equality) of the Gender Equality Index

ECON FEMM - Women in Economics and Finance: Debate on the next challenges in the EU

The European Gender Equality Week takes place on 23-29 October 2023 in the European Parliament and many other European as well as national institutions. This year's edition brings also a change: "Gender Equality: What's next?" The success of the previous editions in 2020, 2021 and 2023 was marked by the growing number of participating committees and delegations and organised events, as well as broader inclusion of partners. This footage shows the extracts from Committees meetings and events of the Gender Equality Week, and statement of Evelyn REGNER (S&D, AT), Vice-president of the European Parliament.

Gender Equality Week in the European Parliament: extracts from Committees meetings and events, and statement of Evelyn REGNER (S&D, AT), Vice-president of the European Parliament

Roberta METSOLA, EP President and Jessika ROSWALL, Swedish Minister for EU Affairs signs various COD LEX texts. Equal Pay Directive, Proposal for a Regulation on general product safety, amending Regulation Social Climate Fund (Fit for 55 package), greenhouse gas emission trading system,EU ETS Directive (Fit for 55 package), MRV Regulation (Fit for 55 package), Regulation establishing a carbon border adjustment mechanism, CBAM (Fit for 55 package), Directive on the exchange of information between the law enforcement authorities of Member States and repealing Council Framework Decision 2006/960/JHA, Information exchange between law enforcement authorities, Directive amending Directive 2003/25/EC as regards the inclusion of improved stability requirements and the alignment of that Directive with the stability requirements defined by the International Maritime Organisation, Ro-Ro passenger ships, Decision the European Parliament and the Council on a European Year of Skills.

Lex Signing ceremony: signature of Eleven COD LEX texts by Roberta METSOLA, EP President and by Jessika ROSWALL, Minister for EU Affairs, on behalf of the Swedish Presidency of the Council.

Parliament debates and approves an agreement with EU Ministers on new legislation requiring EU companies to disclose salary information of their employees. With the aim of closing the gender pay gap, the new law includes dissuasive penalties for employers that do not comply with equal pay rules. Extracts from the debate and from the vote.

Equal pay for equal work between men and women: extracts from the debate and the vote

Samira RAFAELA (Renew, NL), Kira Marie PETER-HANSEN (Greens/EFA, DK), Rapporteurs on the pay transparency directive, and by Robert BIEDROŃ (S&D, PL), FEMM Chair and by Dragoş PÎSLARU (Renew, RO), EMPL Chair give a joint press conference in the European Parliament in Brussels, after the votes in the hemicycle. The transcription is the result of an automatic process. Please, check against delivery.

Press conference by Samira RAFAELA (Renew, NL), Kira Marie PETER-HANSEN (Greens/EFA, DK), Rapporteurs on Pay transparency directive Robert BIEDROŃ (S&D, PL), FEMM Chair and by Dragoş PÎSLARU (Renew, RO), EMPL Chair

During the plenary session in Brussels, MEPs vote on several initiatives: Request for the waiver of the immunity of Anna Júlia Donáth - Sergey LAGODINSKY (Greens/EFA,DE); Joint Investigation Teams collaboration platform - Malik AZMANI (Renew, NL); European Year of Skills 2023 - Loucas FOURLAS (EPP, CY); General Product Safety Regulation - Dita CHARANZOVÁ (Renew, CZ); Equal pay for equal work between men and women (pay transparency and enforcement mechanisms) - Kira Marie PETER-HANSEN (Greens/EFA, DK) and Samira RAFAELA (Renew, NL); Fluorinated gases regulation - Bas EICKHOUT (Greens/EFA, NL); Ozone depleting substances - Jessica POLFJÄRD (EPP, SE); Rule of law situation in the European Union - Motions for Resolutions.

Plenary session - Voting session, including Equal pay for equal work between men and women

Parliament debates an agreement with EU Ministers on new legislation requiring EU companies to disclose salary information of their employees. With the aim of closing the gender pay gap, the new law includes dissuasive penalties for employers that do not comply with equal pay rules. Closing statements by Helena DALLI, European Commissioner for Equality, Samira RAFAELA (Renew, NL) and Kira Marie PETER-HANSEN (Greens/EFA, DK), Rapporteurs

Equal pay for equal work between men and women (pay transparency and enforcement mechanisms): Closing statements by Helena DALLI, European Commissioner for Equality, Samira RAFAELA (Renew, NL) and Kira Marie PETER-HANSEN (Greens/EFA, DK), Rapporteurs

Parliament debates an agreement with EU Ministers on new legislation requiring EU companies to disclose salary information of their employees. With the aim of closing the gender pay gap, the new law includes dissuasive penalties for employers that do not comply with equal pay rules. Second part of the debate.

Equal pay for equal work between men and women (pay transparency and enforcement mechanisms): MEPs debate (part 2)

Parliament debates an agreement with EU Ministers on new legislation requiring EU companies to disclose salary information of their employees. With the aim of closing the gender pay gap, the new law includes dissuasive penalties for employers that do not comply with equal pay rules. MEPs debate (part 1)

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